


I'll protect you

by Alexis_universe



Series: Orphan Connie AU [1]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Connie is adopted by Amethyst, F/M, Gen, Orphan AU, catches with canon, eventually, kinda angsty, purple mom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-12
Updated: 2016-12-05
Packaged: 2018-07-23 12:25:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 8,111
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7463154
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alexis_universe/pseuds/Alexis_universe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After a grueling battle in ocean city. The Crystal gems find a lone survivor</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The tragedy of Ocean Town

Ocean Town was a place where people came to have an average life. At least it was until the incident...

"It's useless Garnet." A Small purple gem spoke through the ruins of Ocean town "There's no point in looking for survivors here."

"For much I hate to admit it, Amethyst's right." Another gem next to the previous one stated. "We did our best to evacuate the place, and all the humans that didn't escaped in time are likely to be dead." The woman said sadly. "We should just leave and let them mourn their families."

"Yeah, and we can't be here much longer." The purple one said. "Greg and Steven are going to be worried."

"Shh..." The leader of the group hushed them. "Do you hear that?"

The pair kept silence until a coughing sound under the rubble of a building was hearable.

The Gems ran towards it and lifted the stones covering the survivor.

They found a small indian looking girl under it, covered by the corpse of a similar looking woman.

The girl stared at them through thick glasses with tear marks over her cheeks.

"Are you okay?" The leader reached out her.

"Yes..." The girl said weakly.

"My name is Garnet and my friends over there are Amethyst and Pearl." She gestured to the gems beside her. "What's your name?"

"Co-" The little girl coughed some dust. "Connie Maheswaran..."

"Alright Connie, Can I ask you some questions?" Garnet said.

The girl nodded in response.

"Do you know what happened here?" She asked

"I was walking with my family down the street, trying to reach our car" The girl began to talk. "When the ground began to shake and monsters appeared from nowhere. My dad told us to run into a building and stayed to keep those things away from us." Her voice became shaky. "W-We kept running away until something big hit the building. It collapsed a bit later. M-My mom decided to hide me in the rubble. She told me to not make a single noise and kept looking at me when another wall fell over us." Connie's eyes began to fill with tears. "Then I saw a piece of metal coming from my mom's belly. There was blood on her mouth but, She kept looking at me, telling me to not worry, that everything would be okay and that she loved me." The girl stopped talking for a moment. "She didn't told me anything after that..."

The Gems looked at her worriedly.

"Do you have somewhere to go?"

The girl shaked her head.

"We'll take you to the nearest shelter, You can rest there." She said.

"Wait!" Amethyst said. "What if we take her with us?"

"What?" Both the girl and Pearl said simultaneously.

"She doesn't have somewhere to go, she lost her family and she's completely alone." The purple gem stated. "And isn't our duty to protect humans, especially those who can't defend themselves?"

"Amethyst, Are you aware of the responsibility you'll take if she agrees to come with us to the temple?" Garnet asked her.

"Yes Garnet. I'm conscious of that." Amethyst said as she moved closer to Connie. "So, What'd you say? D'you want to come live with us? We'll take good care of you."

Connie answered with a nod, and looked at her mother's lifeless body.

"Don't worry, we won't leave her here, a mother who dies for her child deserves to be honored." Garnet said as she lifted up the body with no effort.

"Come on, just, hold my hand." Amethyst stretched out a hand to her.

The girl hesitated for a moment before grasping at Amethyst's soft hand, who quickly wrapped her arms around the girl.

"Everything's gonna be okay... I'll make sure that you'll never get hurt again." The small woman said as the girl began to cry over her shoulder.

The empty streets filled with sorrow as Connie cried until falling asleep on Amethyst's arms.

The gems left the ruins of Ocean Town silently, trying to not wake up the girl. They eventually reached a warp pad and disappeared through it before a large stone crushed it, As if fate didn't wanted them to return to that place.

★ ★ ★

A loud whoosh was heard at the entrance of the temple. Greg turned off the radio he was listening to, and ran towards the house in construction to meet the gems.

"Guys What happened? I heard on the radio that Ocean Town is a wasteland." He paused when he noticed the persons carried by Garnet and Amethyst. "Who are they?"

"Her name's Connie, the only survivor we found and her mom." Amethyst answered.

"Wait, if the girl is the only survivor, does that mean that she is..." Greg said.

Garnet nodded respectfully.

"We want to make a decent funeral for her." Garnet said as she placed the body in the floor, positioning her in a peaceful pose. "She died shielding her daughter from a monster hiding her in the rubble."

"And what about her?" The man asked.

"I brought her with us." Said Amethyst. " Her parents died and she didn't have a place to return. So I offered her a new one and accepted."

"Does that means that we'll have to build another room for the house?" The man asked.

"I'm afraid so." Pearl responded before opening Amethyst's door. "I'll go look for a book about human funerals in your room Amethyst."

"Yeah, just don't clean up while you're searching." The purple gem said.

Pearl grunted as she disappeared through the door.

Amethyst placed the sleeping girl on the already built couch in the living room.

"Don't worry kid." She said softly. "We'll protect you. Don't forget that."

She put a comforter from her room over her before walking towards Garnet.

"D'you knew that this would happen?" The purple gem asked her partner.

"No." She answered. "I only saw futures were both of them were alive." She looked at her mothers body, that appeared to be just asleep. "It's our fault. All those humans..."

"Don't say that Garnet." The small one said. "If it weren't for Alexandrite, the whole state would be like a kindergarten right now."

A silence raised between them.

"You saw yourself in her." Garnet stated.

"Maybe..." Amethyst confessed.

"We'll take care of her, just like with Steven. And just like you." The tall gem said.

"Yeah... We will." Amethyst said while looking at the sleeping girl.


	2. Mourning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Connie wakes up in the Universe household

Connie woke up on the couch of the unfinished house next morning.

She had several bruises along her body and a pair of bandages on her arms and legs. She didn't knew where she was, so she looked for the glasses that came with her to see where she was.

Once she put on her spectacles, she looked around the house. She noted that there where tarps covering some windows of the wood building. Other than that, the house she woke up in was completely habitable.

She also noted that a sandwich and a glass of milk were in a plate over a coffee table near the couch she was resting. The plate had a little note that said: 'Get well soon!!! :D!!!'.

Connie finished to read the note when the door of the building opened.

"Good morning girl!" Amethyst said while walking through the door. "How're you doing?"

Connie just stared at the gem wordlessly, with a mix of curiosity and melancholy.

"Is something wrong?" The gem asked.

"Huh?" The girl said. "No, I'm just..."

"Tired? Hungry?" Amethyst said, offering potential questions.

"Confused." She said. "Where am I?" 

"You are at The Crystal temple in Beach City, Delmarva" The gem said grinning. "The headquarters of the Crystal Gems."

"The what?" Connie asked.

"The Crystal Gems." Amethyst repeated as she took the sandwich of the table before devouring it in one bite. "A group of people that protect the earth."

"You're like Greenpeace?" The girl asked, not even reacting to her apparent breakfast being eaten by someone else, the gem snorted in response.

"Nah, We don't waste our time making 'save the whales' protests." The gem answered. "We could actually save all the whales in the world if we weren't that busy, though."

"What do you do then?" The girl asked again.

"We fight monsters, and we do our best to protect everyone from them." The gem said seriously. 

A large silence set up in the house, only interrupted by the crashing of the waves and the cawing of the seagulls on the beach outside.

"How old are you?" The gem asked.

"I'm 7 years old." The girl answered.

"You look older." 

"My mom used to say the same..." The girl said sadly.

None of them said nothing for an instant.

"What was her name?" Amethyst asked seriously.

Connie stared at the floor sadly before answering.

"Priyanka."

"That's a nice name." She said. "I knew that Garnet wasn't wrong about it."

"What'd you mean?" The girl asked.

"We were taking guesses on her name when we buried her." Amethyst lied. Garnet told them her name at the burial. "Do you want to come and see her?"

"Yes." Connie said.

"Can you move your legs?" The gem asked.

The girl moved her legs weakly.

"A little." She said.

"D'you want me to give you a piggyback ride?"

★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

The pair left the house a moment later.

Connie was amused by the giant statue the Crystal temple had on its front side.

"Beautiful, Isn't?" Amethyst said.

Connie nodded as her ride kept walking.

★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

Eventually, the pair reached the place where Connie's mother was buried.

The grave was on a small cliff at the outskirts of Beach city, placed at the feet of a cherry tree. It was a patch of freshly moved dirt crowned with an ivory tombstone engraved with roses and the inscription: 'Here lies Priyanka Maheswaran.'

Amethyst placed Connie carefully on the ground in front of the tombstone.

"How was she?" Amethyst asked solemnly after a while. "Your mom."

Connie took a moment before answering

"She was... Smart and Brave, Strict yet comprehensive." Tears began to gather slowly in her eyes. "She always put me before her, She always bought me the books I liked because she loved how happy I was reading them." Her voice began to crack. "She always sung this dumb song about the skeleton just to make me laugh when I was sad. She used read me The unfamiliar familiar when I couldn't sleep. She always kept me company when dad was working at night." Her tears began to fall through her cheeks. "She was the only friend I had."

She swept the tears from her eyes when the gem placed a hand over her shoulder.

"I know how you feel." Amethyst said.

The girl looked at her through teary eyes.

"Long ago, I was completely alone. I was on my own for stars know how until She found me. She took me in, and practically raised me. She told me about the beauty of earth and its history and taught me how to protect those close to me."

"You could say that she was like my mom."

Connie just stared in silence as she talked.

"Who was she?" The girl asked.

"Rose Quartz." The gem answered "The most amazing person I've met."

"What happened to her?" The curious girl asked again.

"Some years ago, a musician came to the city for a concert." The gem explained "The man fell in love with her and came to live here on his van. They eventually decided to marry each other and have a family but, when Rose got pregnant, she realized that she had to die in order for the baby to born."

There was silence for a moment.

"Before leaving us, Rose told us to protect her child, and raise him as both gem and human. So, we began to built the house you woke up this morning some years ago, to teach him how to be a gem."

"Wait, What do you mean by gem?" The girl said.

"Huh. I suppose that I didn't mention it before." Amethyst said before pulling a whip from her gem. "We Gems have magical powers."

Connie stared at her with stars in her eyes.

"Why are you so surprised?" The gem said. "Have you really seen a purple skinned human before?"

"I thought that asking that would be rude." The girl said blushing.

"That would explain why nobody has told me anything about it" Amethyst said as the whip vanished from her hand.

"It's a kinda delicate subject actually..." Connie said, with a small smile on her lips.

"Do you want to come back to the temple?" Amethyst said smiling.

Connie stared a moment at the grave before answering.

"Yes. I'm kinda hungry."

Amethyst pulled her on her back again and changed her form into a puma. Connie gasped in awe at her action.

"Do you want some donuts?" The puma asked, only receiving a nod in response.

 

To Be Continued...


	3. Babysitter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Amethyst talks with Connie and leaves her with Greg.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe how easy is to forget that I had to post this story

"Four donuts and a cup of White coffee. It'll be 5.50 please." The donut shop worker said to Amethyst.

Amethyst pulled some coins from her pocket and paid for the donuts.

"Thank you! Have a nice day!" He said before the automatic door closed behind the gem.

"Here you go." She said at the girl waiting at the tables outside the shop, offering her a donut. "A freshly made donut with coffee for breakfast."

"Thanks..." Connie said, still a bit downbeat.

Amethyst watched the girl eat her donut, thinking of a way to make her feel better. She didn't knew what the girl liked, so she decided to ask her about her hobbies.

"So..." The gem ate a whole donut in one bite. "What do you like to do?"

"Huh?" Connie said with her mouth full of donut.

"You know... Stuff you do for fun." Amethyst said

"Well..." The girl put a hand under her chin. "I mainly like to read fantasy books, Study in my room, play the violin..."

Amethyst just sat on her chair, drinking her coffee in one go before eating the disposable cup as she listened the girl's pastimes intently.

"...But my interest faded when one of my classmates blew up the school lab."

"Hmm..." The gem hummed as an idea struck her. "Look, I'll have some work to do with the gems today. So, I was thinking that you could stay with a friend of mine while I'm busy."

Connie stared at her sadly. 

"Don't worry." Amethyst reassured her "I'll be back before you know it."

"You promise?" The girl gave her a puppy eyed look.

"I already did." The gem said grinning. "Remember?"

Connie gave her a little smile before finishing her breakfast.

★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

They walked a few blocks from the donut shop into a newly established carwash.

"Wait here." Amethyst said. "I'll be back in a sec."

The girl nodded and stood outside the building as her companion entered the building.

★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

"Can you do that for me? Please~?" Amethyst said at the man.

"Amethyst?" Greg said. "Are you seriously leaving that poor girl with me while you do some stuff you want to do?"

"Yes?" The gem asked.

The old man sighed.

"Amethyst, you can just let others take on your responsibilities." He said. 

"I know but, I really really really have to do this Greg." The gem pleaded. "I don't want to ruin her surprise."

The human sighed in defeat.

"Just this time, Amethyst." Greg said.

"Thanks! Thanks!! Thanks!!!" The gem hugged the man excitedly.

She opened the door of the building, Where Connie was waiting outside, looking curiously at the carwash' tunnel.

"What cha doin'?" Amethyst asked playfully, startling the girl in the process.

"I-I was just looking at the tunnel of the carwash." The girl said nervous by the small scare the gem gave her. "I've never saw a carwash before, so I decided to investigate a little."

"That's cool." The gem said nonchalantly. "Come on, There's someone I'd like to introduce you."

The girl followed the gem into the building this time. Behind the counter was the owner. A tall corpulent man with a goofy expression on his face.

"Connie, This guy is Greg Universe." Amethyst said. "He'll put an eye on you while I'm busy. Have fun!"

After this awkward introduction, Amethyst ran out of the building, leaving a trail of dust behind her.

"She does that often?" Connie asked the man.

"Nah, She usually jumps into the sky or turns into a bird." He confessed.

A long silence made itself present between both of them.

"So..." Greg said in an effort to erase the awkward ambience. "I heard what happened in Ocean city. That's some really hard stuff."

"You could say so..." The girl said sadly.

"How are you handling that?" He asked.

"Good, I think." She answered.

"Wanna talk about it?" The man said.

"Not really." Connie said.

"Yeah... Me neither." Greg said scratching the backside of his neck.

Another awkward silence made itself present for a minute before Greg spoke again.

"Is there something you'd like to do while Amethyst returns?" The man said.

"Hmm... I don't know..." The girl said pensively "Do you have any music?"

The man's face turned a bit brighter at the mention of music.

"Any preferences?" He asked.

"I don't know..." Connie said "I'm fine with anything"

"I've been waiting to hear those words a long time ago." Greg looked for an old CD labeled as 'Space train into the cosmos' behind the counter. Once he found it, he placed it in a small CD player on his work station and sat comfortably on his chair.

Connie sat in a chair near the window of the building while her temporary caretaker played the CD.

She liked the rhythm of the rock song Greg chose for her. However, once the lyrics began, she was surprised, as the singer had a very similar voice to the man in front of her.

"Um... Mr Greg?" The girl said.

"What is it?" He said with a small grin on his lips.

"Did you sang, that song?" She asked.

"Yup, I Wrote that years ago." The man said. "I used to play this song when I was in a tour as a one man band across the country."

When he said that, Connie's head began to connect the dots between his story and Amethyst's one.

"What happened?" She asked pretending intrigue. "Why'd you stay here?."

Greg stared melancholically at a window before answering.

"Back in the day when I was a beginner rock star, I set up a concert here in Beach city. However, not a single soul showed up. So, I just played some songs hoping that someone would listen them until I heard clapping coming from the empty chairs I placed for the audience, a clap that came from the most beautiful woman I've ever seen..."

"Rose Quartz..." Connie whispered to herself.

"We flirted to each other after my show ended and then I followed her to the place she lived in." He continued. "I gave her a branded T-shirt and left to Empire city for another concert. However, Just when I was about to leave Beach city, I decided to stay here and see where a relationship with her could take us."

"Where is she now?" The girl asked, knowing the answer already."

The music stopped at that moment and the man's semblant turned even more melancholic.

"Nine years ago, She told me that she wanted to have a baby with me." He said. "But she didn't told me that she would die at our son's birth."

"I'm sorry for your loss Mr Universe." His companion said.

"Thank you, Connie." Greg said. "But I don't like to think of that as a loss."

"What'd you mean?" Connie said confused, as a kid entered the car wash.

"Dad!!" The kid said smiling to Greg.

"Steven!" His father said. "What were you doing?"

"I was packing up my stuff for the 'Moving in with the Gems' thing." He responded. "What were YOU doing?"

"Remember the Girl that the Gems brought last night?" The man asked, getting a enthusiastic nod in response. "Well... Amethyst asked me to look after her for a while."

"Cool..." He said with starry eyes. "Where is she?"

"Umm... Hi?" Connie said while waving her hand awkwardly at the boy.

The boy blushed furiously at his own embarrassment before running at her side.

"Sorry for not noticing you before." Steven said blushing before stretching his hand towards hers "My name's Steven."

"Connie." The girl said shaking his hand.

"Umm... Steven?" Greg said looking at a dusty car parking in front of his business. "Why don't you show Connie the place while I attend the customers?"

"That's a great idea dad!!" The excitable boy said. "Do you want to come and see the city?"

Connie pondered about the offer for a second. She already saw Beach city over Amethyst's back but she thought that doing so could let her know more about the people who took her in.

"Yeah, Sure." She answered.

"What are we waiting then?" Steven said, pulling Connie by the arm in his excitement. "Let's go!"

After this, the pair of children left the car wash and began to walk quickly into the city.

 

To Be Continued.....


	4. Friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven shows Connie the place.

"And if you look at your right, you'll see Beach City's founder's statue." Steven said, giving the girl a small tour around the town. "I've heard that he became a giant to save his ship and crew and dragged it to the peninsula with his men."

Connie laughed at his comment, making the boy to smile even more.

"Who told you that?" She asked.

"Mayor Dewey told us that last year." He said.

"Are you sure he wasn't lying?"

"Why would the mayor lie to the city?" Steven answered.

"Um..." Connie had read about the theme but didn't wanted to overwhelm the kid with boring political stuff she read once for an advanced homework she had.

"Good point." She said smiling before walking again.

★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

The kids zipped through the town as fast Connie could run, passing through all of the shops in the boardwalk (from Fish Stew Pizza and The Boardwalk fries, to Funland arcade and The big donut) and the residential area near Greg's Carwash until they reached Funland Amusement Park.

"So..." Steven said before entering the pier where the amusement park was established. "What do you think of the Gems?"

"Huh?" Connie said taken aback by his question. "What do I think of them? Why are you asking this?"

"I dunno." He said. "I guess I want to know if you bonded with them."

"Hmmm..." The girl looked at the ground before answering. "They seem nice, but I don't believe that I can answer your question properly."

"Why?" Steven stared at her with curiosity.

"The only of them who talked to me so far is Amethyst." Connie said. "She's the one who brought me to your house."

"And what'd you think of her?"

"Well... I think that she's nice. She looked worried about me when I woke up this morning."

"She did?!" Steven said surprised.

"Yeah, She stared at me like if I wasn't going to wake up..." Connie said as they passed through the park's entrance.

Steven looked at her with sympathetic eyes, a look that appeared to say to change the subject.

"Anyway, I feel a little bit better now." She said, complying with the unspoken words.

"Yeah, She knows how to make people feel better." Steven stated. "Unless you're Pearl. She loves to pull pranks on her all the time though."

"Really?" The girl asked raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah!!" He said. "One time, she turned into a tiger and chased Pearl through all the beach."

"Why?" Connie said chuckling at the mental image.

"I dunno." Steven shrugged. "Dad told me that she can be complicated."

"I guess she is..." Connie said, remembering the gem's story she heard earlier that morning.

None of them said anything for a minute.

"So..." Steven remembered where they were. "Have you ever rode a roller coaster?"

"Not that I remember." Connie said.

The boy gave her a grin and took her to 'The Appalachian' for her first roller coaster ride.

★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

The sun came down as the evening passed.

"So, did you like your first visit to funland?" Steven asked his new friend as he walked out of the park with her, holding a stuffed animal she won at a presumptively rigged game.

"It was fun." Connie answered. "I wouldn't dare to say that it is the safest place on earth, but I definitely had fun."

Steven gave her a chuckle as they walked back to Greg's carwash.

They only walked for at least five minutes before Connie talked again.

"Steven?"

"Yes?"

"Amethyst and your Dad told me about your mom." She said.

"They did?" Steven said with a confused look on his face.

"What do you know about her?" She asked.

"Well... Pearl told me that she was beautiful, that she was a really strong and brave gem, and that she loved everything in this world, no matter how small or disgusting it was." Steven responded. "Why are you asking?"

Steven's words made Connie remember her mother's grave on the hill and a tear rolled down her cheek.

"Connie? Are you okay?" The boy asked her worriedly.

"I'm fine Steven." She responded, wiping the tear from her face. "I was just being curious."

Steven stared at her with emphatic eyes before speaking again.

"You miss your mom, don't you Connie?"

She let out a sigh before answering.

"A lot."

"You want to talk about it?" He asked, trying to not making her feel uncomfortable.

The girl looked at the carwash in front of them, where she saw Pearl and Greg outside of the building.

"Yes, but maybe later." She said, not wanting to alarm the adults.

"Oh." Steven said understanding her words. "Okay."

The pair kept walking to the business, holding down their talk for the day.

 

To be continued...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I edited the two previous chapters if you want to re-read them.


	5. Surprise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You might be wondering about Amethyst's plan

"Have fun!" Amethyst said before leaving the car wash at full speed in direction of the temple.

Once she reached the almost finished building, she took a moment to slow down and calm herself before opening the door.

"Hello Amethyst." Garnet said carrying a large piece of glass. "Where's Connie?"

"Uh..." Amethyst froze for a second, trying to say what she wanted without messing up her plan. "She's at Greg's."

"Why?"

Amethyst sighed, She couldn't find a way of lying to Garnet, as she could have known her reasons already using her future vision to gaze into a future where she spilled the beans or something like that.

"I asked him to take care of her for the evening." She confessed.

"Amethyst." 

"Yes, I know." The small gem said, anticipating a nag from her partner. "I should be the one taking care of Connie and I definitely shouldn't let others take on my responsibilities."

Garnet just kept staring at her through her shades.

"But listen, I have a good reason to let her stay with Greg today." She kept going. "I realized that she doesn't have a room for herself and she doesn't have any belongings here or clothes and I don't want her to feel like she doesn't have anything in here because she won't feel like in home and-and-"

"Amethyst." Garnet's soft voice interrupted her as she placed a soft hand over her shoulder. "There's a unused room in front of the Beach House's bathroom."

"There it is?" Amethyst asked after calming down a little bit.

"A year ago, when we began the construction, I thought that Greg could use a room for himself so he could live here with Steven." Garnet said. "But He declined the offer when I finished it and now the room is abandoned."

Upon hearing this, Amethyst looked for a nonexistent doorknob in the wall in front of the bathroom. 

"How come that we didn't knew about this room?" She asked.

"You were doing stuff at your friend's house for an entire week, and Pearl was busy looking for her weapons in your room." Garnet walked behind her and found a somewhat hidden lever in between the wall, camouflaged as the wallboards around it. She pulled it and caused a rolling door to open, revealing a well lit room with an uncovered bed with its mattress in it.

"Whoa... This is perfect!" Amethyst hugged Garnet's thigh. "Thank you Garnet!"

"You're welcome." Garnet said before leaving to put the last details to the house.

"My stars... She's gonna love this." Amethyst said before hurrying to her room to search for stuff that Connie could like.

★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★ ★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

After several trips back and forth between rooms and tyding up the mess she did in the girl's new room, Amethyst was left exhausted. She even considered to take a nap or going for a snack, but after looking at the setting sun through one of the windows of the room, She sprung towards the house's door at full speed, crashing with Pearl who was about to walk through it.

"AMETHYST!!" The white gem shouted. "Why are you running in the house!? What were you doing in the bathroom!? And where is the girl you were supposed to be watching over?"

"Calm Down P." Amethyst said nonchalantly as she stood up away from her. "I left her at Greg's this morning."

"Why would you do such a thing?" Pearl asked.

"Um..." Amethyst contemplated the option to tell her teammate her plan, but decided to keep her in the dark as Pearl could screw up the surprise (Even though Pearl was proud to say that she was Rose's greatest confidant, she was a really bad liar and was easy to crack under pressure.) "It's a secret."

Pearl just sighed as an answer.

"Anyways, The house is finished and is habitable enough for Steven to live in here." Pearl said. "I was about to inform Steven and Greg about it."

Amethyst looked around the house, looking for her largest teammate.

"And Garnet?" She asked.

"She's in her room." Pearl said as she left the house's interior. "Probably meditating or talking with herself." She began to walk downstairs to the beach. "I'll be back in a moment."

Amethyst stared at her figure hide behind the wall of rocks behind the temple as she made her way to Greg's carwash. She entered the house and dropped herself on the couch.

"I hope she likes it." Amethyst muttered to herself as she waited for her teammates to appear in the house again.

To be Continued...


	6. Coming home

"Daaad!!!" Steven said, stealing Greg's attention away from Pearl, who was apparently talking about something with the man.

"Kids!" The old man said before addressing Connie. "How did your little project went?"

"Well..." The girl shared a look with Steven . "All I can say is that Steven's a really good tourist guide."

Steven giggled at her comment before Pearl came closer to them.

"Project?" She asked.

"I thought that it would be a great idea to show Beach city to Connie." Steven said. "I left no place unexplored."

"That's a good gesture, Steven!" The gem said. "But maybe you could tell me more at the Beach House." 

"The Beach House?" He asked. "I thought it still was in construction."

"Not anymore!" The tall gem said smiling. "Garnet decided to give the finishing touches to the Beach House and now is completely habitable!" 

"That's great!" The kid said. "Connie, would you like to come and help me with my stuff?"

The girl looked into his pleading eyes, understanding that he wanted to talk with her, alone.

"Sure." She said as he grabbed her hand and ran towards Greg's van before leaving their prizes in Greg's hands for safekeeping.

"We'll be waiting for you at the temple!!" Pearl shouted at them.

"But didn't you said that you were going to build another room for Connie?" Greg said, struggling to not drop all of the children's spoils into the ground.

Pearl froze at his comment, remembering the words that she said last night.

"M-Maybe she could sleep on the couch?" Pearl said Nervously. The man sighed in response before following her to the finished house.

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"You didn't told me that your dad sleeps in a van." Connie said as she eyed the somewhat spacious vehicle.

"He's emotionally attached to it." Steven said as he took a small backpack from the van.

"I see..." She said, looking at a guitar leaned back into the backside of the driver's seat.

There was silence between them for a small moment.

"So..." Connie said. "None of you actually told me why the gems built a house especially for you."

"They told me that since I have mom's gem, I need to learn how to use it's powers." He said as he pulled his starred shirt to show her the pink gem on his navel. "I still remember the words Pearl told me when I asked her:" He cleared his throat before mimicking Pearl's voice. " _You could really endanger your life if your powers were to awaken in a non-controlled environment, Steven. You need to learn about gem culture and history, and the only place where you can learn about that is with us._ "

"I see..." She said giggling, looking at the orange sun hiding on the horizon. "Did you finished?"

"Yup!" Steven said as he picked up a teddy bear from a pile of other toys. "Let's go!"

Connie grabbed his pillow and teddy bear while he took his backpack and an ukulele.

"You didn't told me that you played the ukulele." She said.

"I'm a man of many secrets..." He said playfully, eliciting another giggle from the girl before making their way towards the temple.

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"Amethyst...." Pearl said, poking the sleeping form of her partner.

The quartz just groaned and pushed the lithe gem's hand away.

Pearl didn't liked that.

"Amethyst! Wake up!" She said, shaking the purple gem by her arm.

"Urgh...." The smaller gem grunted while rubbing her eyes. "What's wrong with you, P? You could've been more gentle."

"I'll tell you what's wrong with me." The pale gem said with her arms crossed. "Steven's moving in with us and you're sleeping on the couch!"

Amethyst looked at the pink sunset through the screen door.

"Where's Connie?" She asked.

"Steven asked her to help him with his stuff." Pearl said as she headed towards the temple's door. "They'll be here in a moment."

There was a small silence between them until Pearl opened the temple's door.

"Thanks." Amethyst said to Pearl.

"Huh?" The other gem said. "For what?"

"For letting Connie stay." Amethyst said.

Pearl's face flushed at the unusual comment.

"I know that you're not the best when it comes to socialize with humans." She continued. "It means a lot to me that you guys actually let her stay."

"Well... it's like you said." Pearl said as the brightest shade of teal appeared on her cheeks. "It is our job to protect the creatures of this planet, and that includes human orphans like Connie."

"D'you think she'll be okay with us?" The quartz said.

Another silence made itself present as Pearl stepped out of the house into her room.

"I'm more worried about if she'll be safe with us." She said sadly as the door closed behind her.

"Was that an insult or just her angst talking?" Amethyst asked herself as she lifted up from the sofa.

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"And then what happened?" Connie said as they walked towards the end of the peninsula.

"Garnet appeared from the sky and crushed the bug with her hands." Steven said as he hammered his unoccupied hand against the underside of the ukulele. "We had to clean up the car wash for an entire week after that."

She giggled at the comment. "Really?"

"Yup." He said. "Squashed, giant bugs are hard to clean. They make a nice hair conditioner though."

"Eww!" She said. "That's really gross!"

"That's true. That was the grossest thing I've ever put into my hair." He said before brushing his hair with his hand. "But this soft hair was worth it."

The Girl laughed again before her companion joined her.

When their laughter stopped, they had reached the temple, and were in front of the staircase that led to the house, where Greg was waiting for them.

"Steven, Connie!" He said. "What took you so long?"

"I had a problem with deciding which of my plush toys I would bring with me." He lied badly, but convincingly enough to fool his own father.

"Well, in any case, you're just in time." He said. "The Gems told me that you can enter whenever you're ready."

"Oh... Okay..." Steven said before heading to the stairs.

However, the boy stopped midways and returned to give his father a hug.

Connie looked at them, a feeling of melancholy growing up inside her as a memory of her father playing with her came to her mind. 

She pushed the memory back into her mind. She didn't wanted to steal Steven's spotlight with her problems.

Once the show of affection ended, the boy returned to the stairs, beckoning Connie with a soft look.

They stepped up the stairs and stood in front of the door of the house.

"Are you ready?" Steven asked the girl.

Connie could've said 'No' at that instant. She thought for a moment that if she walked through that door, something horrible would end up happening. That these women were dangerous and attracted danger.

However, she thought back of her mother and father: The only friends she had in her short life, who gave up their own lives so their only daughter could keep living. She told herself that they wouldn't be able to rest in peace if she wasted the second chance to live that destiny gave her.

She also thought about the persons who found her. They offered to give her a place to live, to protect her, and support her —To give her a new home.

She had spent a day with to them, and found herself intrigued by the group, not only for the fact that they appeared to jump out of the pages of her fantasy books, but for the fact that they were so willing to help her.

Yes, she was scared of what the future could bring her. However, she decided to take the risk that the Crystal Gems were and accept what fate had placed in front of her.

She took a deep breath and after what felt like an eternity, answered Steven's question.

"Yes."

"Okay then..." He said before placing his hand on the doorknob, opening the door.

To Be Continued...


	7. Family

The Three gems stood in front of the door, waiting for it to open, a framed portrait of Rose Quartz hung above it.

The House was finished by Garnet a few hours earlier that day (It was a question of placing a missing window and hammering wood, So It couldn't be considered a rushed work). The only thing missing then was its inhabitants.

"What's taking them so long?" Pearl said.

"Be patient, Pearl." Garnet said. "Let the kids take their time. You know like me how hard it is to live in a new place."

They fell silent again, looking at the door with anticipation. However, a certain thought jumped out from Amethyst's mind.

"You don't think that she'd backed out, Don't you?" The purple gem said.

"Huh?" Pearl said.

"Not at all." Garnet said. "She's definitely gonna stay." 

"You really think so?" Amethyst asked.

Garnet just lowered her shades as a response.

"She's definitely going to stay." She stated as she returned to see the door.

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Five minutes later, The moment they had waited for arrived.

The door opened slowly, the pair of kids were behind it.

"Welcome, Steven and Connie!" The Gems said once they saw them.

A smile formed on Steven's face as he ran to hug Pearl and Garnet.

Connie, however, took a glimpse at the finished house, which was no longer covered in tarps, as they were replaced with glass and wood. She then looked at the small gem in front of her, who looked at her with an undescribable expression.

"So... You're here..." She said at the girl.

"Well, I kinda needed a place to sleep in so..." She attempted to make a joke, trying to change Amethyst's mood into a happier one.

She just smiled a bit, ignoring when Greg entered the house.

"How did you spent your day?" The gem asked as the others showed the place to Steven.

"I went to Funland with Steven after he gave me a tour around the city." She answered.

"And what'd you think?" Amethyst asked.

"Well... The place is small, but it's also charming in a way." She answered.

"I was talking about Steven." The gem said with the hint of a smile.

"Oh..." The girl said blushing. "Well, I think he's a good person, and he's also very funny."

"Well, that's a good thing." Amethyst said. "'Cause you're gonna be his roommate for a while."

Connie flashed her a small nervous grin before joining the others.

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"And that was the bathroom." Pearl said proud of her work as she finished to show the house to the kids. "Do you have any questions?"

Connie sheepishly raised her hand.

"Yes, Connie?" Pearl said. 

"Where am I going to sleep?" The girl asked.

A small blush crept into Pearl's cheeks.

"I, uh, guess that you could sleep on the couch until we find something more... comfortable." The gem said.

"Oh... I see..." Connie said with mild disappointment.

Upon hearing this, Garnet nudged Amethyst slightly on her shoulder.

The small quartz understood what she had to do. She cleared her throat loudly to get everyone's attention.

"I think that I can do something with that problem." The purple gem said as she pulled the hidden handle in the aisle.

Everyone but Garnet were surprised when they saw the room behind the door. 

The previously empty room now had bookshelves filled with several science and fantasy books. A wardrobe stocked up with comfy clothes was next to a antique dresser with a silvery mirror on it. The bed was now covered by a pink blanket decorated with teal colored roses and large, white pillows; An almost new violin was placed on it. Next to the bed was a nightstand with a small lamp, Which had the shape of a golden flower. On the middle of the floor was a large, embroidered mat. The last rays of the sun passed through one of the windows.

"Amethyst? What is this?" Pearl asked in awe.

"Connie's room." The quartz said. "What else could it be?"

"All of this..." Connie said as she entered the room. "For me?"

"Yup." Amethyst said proud of herself. "I found all of this in my part of the temple." She stepped in to be next to the girl. "Nobody's been using this junk so I thought you would like it."

The girl stood speechless for a moment, worrying the gem as her eyes swelled up with tears.

However, said worry was dispelled immediately when Connie hugged Amethyst.

"Thank you..." She said as the gem returned the sign of affection.

The others stood outside of the door, looking at the emotive display with various reactions: Greg looked at them with a gentle look, Pearl wondered why was a room in there, Steven made a quite long 'Aww', and Garnet just smirked the way she did when the best outcome she saw became real.

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The night had fallen when Greg left the house, giving another hug to his son before leaving.

The gems followed suit after a while, retreating to the temple after wishing them Good night.

This left the children all alone in the house.

Connie was sitting on the edge of her bed, looking at the mahogany-like instrument Amethyst gave her.

She had just left the shower and changed into a nice purple nightgown that was in the wardrobe.

 

She was about to tense the instrument's strings when Steven knocked on the door.

"Come in." She said, letting the young boy into the room.

He was carrying a bag full of biscuits, a jar of strawberry jam and a small butter knife.

"I thought we could have a little new-house-dinner." He said smiling while wiggling the items in his hands.

Connie smiled in return before beckoning Steven to sat alongside her.

"Is that a violin?" He asked the girl while undoing the resealable strip of the bag of bread.

"Yeah..." She said. "I think Amethyst gave it to me 'cause I told her I used to play it."

"How does it sounds?" He said with starry eyes after unscrewing the jar's cap.

"I don't know." She said. "I was about to tune it and see."

Steven sliced a bread in half and spread the sweet conserve on it before offering it to Connie.

"Thanks." She said as she took it from his hands.

He prepared a biscuit for himself before falling into a comfortable silence for a moment until Steven spoke again.

"You know what would be a great idea?" He asked his friend, who looked at him with an interested look. "A musical duo between us."

"Really?" She said.

"Yup. You on the violin and me on the ukulele." He said before chomping on the biscuit.

"That would be nice." She said before biting her bread and tasting the sweetness of the strawberries.

The silence settled again inbetween their chewing and the barely hearable crashing of the waves.

Once Steven finished his pastry, he decided to speak with Connie again.

"Connie, can I ask you something?" He said.

"Sure." She answered after swallowing the remaining part of her biscuit.

"How was your old house?" He said, shocking his companion.

Connie took a deep breath before answering. 

"It was a small apartment in Ocean city. Me and my parents just moved in there like a week ago." She said. "I barely had time to enjoy it since..."

Connie fell silent once more.

"If I were to take a guess, then I believe that my house was destroyed." She added.

The silence this time was heavy and uncomfortable, making the atmosphere around them a bit tenser.

"How were they?" Steven said, hoping to not make the girl cry. "Your parents."

Connie stared at the window in front of her, which gave her a nice view of the beach.

"My mom was a doctor, and my dad was a beach security guard." She said. "We moved in because of him, a popular beach hired dad for a season."

She lowered her gaze towards her hands. 

"They were always worried about me." She said. "Sure, they were overprotective and a bit overbearing. But..."

She clasped her hands over her thighs, tears beginning to flood her eyes.

"That's also the reason they're not here anymore..."

Connie was shaking, trying to subdue the need to cry and let out her feelings.

However, Steven wrapped her in a hug, causing her to lose control over her emotions.

She began to cry over his shoulder as Steven reassured her with kind words.

"I'm sorry for your loss, Connie." He said. "I can't even imagine what I would do if something happened to dad or the gems."

"I don't know how they were exactly, but I know that your parents loved you a lot if they did what they did for your sake."

"It must be hard, to carry on with your life after losing someone so dear to you." He said, tightening his grip around her. "But that only means that the rest of your life will be worth it."

They remained hugged for a minute until Connie's sobbing subsided.

"You okay?" He asked her.

"I don't know..." She said, a faint smile appeared on her lips. "But I guess I will be."

Steven gave her a small grin in response.

"Do you want to play some tunes together?" The boy asked his friend.

Connie looked at the forgotten instrument and found herself wanting to do some practice with him.

"Sure!" She said.

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"Steven!" Amethyst said as she looked for the kids in the house. "Steven, where are you?!"

She stopped midways the living room when she heard snores coming from Connie's room.

The gem opened up the door and found the pair of children tucked inside the bed, the violin she gave her and Steven's ukelele were on the dresser.

Amethyst smiled at herself before leaving the pair of children, ignoring Pearl's request for waking them up.

THE END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We've reached the end of this tale, but do not fear! I will make more stuff about this little orphan adopted by aliens

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> If you liked the story please let me know in the comments!


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